BELL RINGER

1. WHAT MAKES A RESOURCE NON-RENEWABLE?

2. WHAT FEATURES ARE FORMED WHEN AN OCEANIC PLATE COLLIDES WITH A CONTINENTAL PLATE?

3. AN OCTOPUS IS WHICH OF THE THREE TYPES OF OCEAN LIFE?

OIL, COAL, AND GASFOSSIL FUELS

WHAT ARE FOSSIL FUELS?

• Fossil Fuels are the energy rich substances formed from the remains of once-living organisms.

• The three major fossil fuels are coal, oil and natural gas.

• Fossil fuels are made of hydrocarbons, they contain carbon and hydrogen's.

HOW DO WE USE FOSSIL FUELS?

• The process by which we turn fossil fuels into energy is called combustion.

• Combustion needs a hydrocarbon and oxygen, and turns it into CO2, H2O, and energy.

• We use this energy (usually in the form of heat) to run generators or motors.

ENERGY CONSUMPTION IN THE USA

History of use:

- Wood- Coal- Oil- Natural Gas- Nuclear- Renewables

MATCH ENERGY SOURCES TO HOW WE USE THEM

• Primary

• oil-based fuels

• natural gas

• coal

• nuclear power

• more than one of the above

• Secondary

• transportation

• industrial processes

• heating and cooling spaces

• generation of electrical power

HOW ARE FOSSIL FUELS FORMED?

• Millions of years of ….

• 1) photosynthesis exceeding respiration (decomposition).

• 2) detritus accumulation.

• 3) burial of detritus.

• 4) pressure & heat (metamorphosis).

OIL AND NATURAL GASSTAGE 1: 200-400 MILLION YEARS AGO

• Plankton die and fall to ocean floor

• Layers of sediment bury their remains

OIL AND NATURAL GASSTAGE 2: 50-100 MILLION YEARS AGO

• Remains buried deeper under sediment

• Bacteria decompose organic matter

• Pressure and temperature increase

OIL AND NATURAL GASSTAGE 3: TODAY

• Greater pressure and increased temperature form thick, liquid oil

• More pressure and temperatures form natural gas

• Oil and natural gas begin to rise through pores until they get trapped by impermeable rock

• Oil/Natural gas collected

REFINING OIL

• When oil is first pumped out of the ground, it is called crude oil.

• A factory where crude oil is separated into fuels and other products by heating is called a refinery.

COAL FORMATION• Very similar to oil and gas, except

coal is formed by large plants millions of years ago in swampy areas.

• Dead plants pile on top of each other and undergo chemical changes to turn first into peat (push out oxygen and leave only rich hydrocarbons)

• Peat -> Lignite (richer in hydrocarbons) -> Coal (richest)

• Must be mined through underground shafts.

WHO HAS THE OIL? PROVEN RESERVES IN BILLIONS OF BARRELS

Region Reserves

North America 75.7

South and Central America 79.1

Europe 20.2

Former Soviet Countries 57.0

Middle East 676.4

Africa 67.6

Far East and Oceania 42.3

Total 1018.3

FOSSIL FUELS – ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES

Natural Gas

Advantages

Provides lots of energy

Lower levels of air pollutants

Easy to transport

Disadvantages

Highly flammable

Oil

Advantages

Easy to make usable for vehicles

High energy density

Useful for lots of industries

Disadvantages

US has large dependence on foreign states

Source of many spills

Cause of many wars

Toxic materials created during refining

Coal

Advantages

Easy to transport

Most plentiful fossil fuel

Cheap to gather

Disadvantages

Destroys natural landscapes

Causes most pollution out of all fossil fuels

Only useful for specific industries

FOREIGN OIL DEPENDENCEProblems:

• Variations in cost of purchases

• Threat of supply disruptions

• Limitations of nonrenewable resource

Impacts:

• Pollution of oceans

• Coastal oil spills

• Trade imbalances

• Military actions

WHY WAS PERSIAN GULF WAR (1ST GULF WAR – 1991) FOUGHT?

• To free the people of Kuwait?

• To protect Kuwait oil fields from Iraq?

• To drive up domestic oil prices?

• To force OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) to come to terms on oil prices?

WHAT A BARREL OF OIL REALLY COSTS U.S. CONSUMERS

• $14 is initial price per barrel

• + $80 for military support services

• = $94 is actual price per barrel

FUTURE FOSSIL FUEL SUPPLIES

• Oil & Natural gas -50 year supply

• Coal - 100 year supply

• No oil = no cars, no jets, no transport trucks, no cargo ships

• No coal = no power

SO NOW WHAT?